OWhat Is Offline to Online (O2O) Commerce?
Offline to Online (O2O) commerce is a business strategy that draws potential customers from online channels to make purchases in physical stores. Offline to Online business (O2O) identifies customers in the online space, such as through emails and Internet advertising, and then uses a variety of tools and approaches to entice the customers to leave the online space. This type of strategy incorporates techniques used in online marketing with those used in brick-and-mortar marketing.
How Online-To-Offline (O2O) Commerce Works
Retailers once fretted that they would not be able to compete with e-commerce companies that sold goods online, especially in terms of price and selection. Physical stores required high fixed costs (rent) and many employees to run the stores and, because of limited space, they were unable to offer as wide a selection of goods. Online retailers could offer a vast selection without having to pay for as many employees and only needed access to shipping companies in order to sell their goods.
Online-To-Offline (O2O) Commerce Trends
Consider Amazon’s $13.7 billion purchase of Whole Foods in 2017 and you can see where the leader in online commerce is placing some of its bets—in physical space.1Amazon will even let you pay with your Amazon Prime credit card at Whole Foods and earn 5% rewards, the same as if you used your Amazon card to pay online.
Steps To Take Your Offline Business Online
1. Understand why you must get your offline business online
2. Understand the benefits of moving your retail business online
3. Collect offline customers’ emails for future online marketing actions
4. Assess your online assets
5. Plan to move your offline presence online
6. Choose an e-commerce platform
7. Buy a domain
8. Build a high-converting e-commerce website
9. Plan for marketing & SEO
10. Final steps before the launch
11. Go live
1. Understand why you must get your offline business online
Moving your offline business to an online setting is the best thing you can do to ensure the future success of your retail business. Even if you live somewhere that is entering the early phases of reopening, don’t be so quick to fall into the lull of business as usual. As these unforeseen circumstances have proven, it’s never too early to prepare your business for future potential disruptions.
The Internet is made for business
Potential customers can find you quickly
Work more easily with other businesses and professionals
2. Understand the benefits of moving your retail business online
Get your information out to the public: Moving your retail business online is an excellent way to let the public know who you are and what you’re about. You’ll have the perfect venue to present your products and services and explain why a potential customer should choose you as the solution to their problem. You can explain elements of your business or educate customers about related topics.
• Save money: Shifting to an online retail business can reduce operational and administrative costs. Even if you keep your brick-and-mortar storefront, you can operate with reduced hours, no longer having to wait for foot traffic to bring in new business. Your website does the work for you.
• Find new leads and make new sales in a global market: Bringing your retail business online allows you to target the global market with your goods, expanding your business’s reach and providing an almost endless supply of potential new customers.
• Stay open around the clock: Online shopping can be done anytime or anywhere. Don’t be held back by standard store hours. Having an online store allows people to shop when it’s convenient for them, so you can sell products 24/7/365.
• Improve your customer support: Having a website is allows you to solve customer issues even if it’s the middle of the night. Post the answers to common questions your customers may have in a FAQ section or use a site feature like a chatbot that will engage with your customers, answer simple questions, and record any issues that require personal follow-up during business hours.
3 Collect offline customers’ emails for future online marketing actions
Tap into your current pool of customers as a resource for your pivot to digital by collecting their email addresses for your marketing campaigns. At your physical location, next to your register or reception area, have an email sign-up sheet. Let them know they’ll receive a discount voucher by email or text with a link to the site and a coupon to encourage sign-ups.
You can also ask for feedback customers have about opening an online store. Not only will this help welcome your existing customers to your new digital store, but it can also give you great insight into what your customers are looking for when it comes to online shopping.
3 Collect customer testimonials
Testimonials are a great way for potential clients to see what other people are saying about you and your business. As a result, they are a very effective way to get more clients and customers. Ask satisfied customers to leave testimonials detailing what they like about your business. You can have a review section on your website where people can voluntarily leave their comments, or you can ask for permission to use their testimonials in your marketing efforts.
4.Assess your online assets
Look at your current online presence. Even if you are one of the late-adopters of all the newest technology, you probably still have some form of digital imprint. Your current online assets will form the basis of your new online business strategy: what do you need to improve, and what do you need to build from scratch?
To assess your online assets, ask yourself the following questions:
What are all the digital accounts you have affiliated with your business?
• Do you have a bare-bones website as a placeholder that you’ve been intending to update for years?
• Do you have a presence on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, Tiktok, etc.? (Count these, even if they are not frequently posted to.)
5. Plan to move your offline presence online
Before jumping into the deep end of the digital ocean, make a plan for establishing your online presence. Figure out how you want to go about taking your retail business online by answering some of the following important questions, such as:
• Do you want to completely switch to an online business model all at once?
• If you launch the online part of your business while running your current one, can you run the two businesses (online and offline) together or will it increase your workload detrimentally?
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